Gypsy Jan - 5-24-2012 at 02:42 PM
From the San Diego Union Tribune
Written by Sandra Dibble May 23, 2012
"U.S. and Mexican authorities on Wednesday announced the extradition from Mexico to San Diego of a suspected drug trafficker described as a onetime
leading member of the Fernando Sanchez Arellano Organization.
Armando Villarreal Heredia, also known as "El Gordo Villarreal" was scheduled for arraignment Thursday in San Diego federal court, where he faces
federal racketeering and drug charges.
A statement from the U.S. Attorney's Office in San Diego described Villarreal as the lead defendant in a 43-defendant prosecution against the Sanchez
Arellano Organization that was launched in 2010.
In the statement, U.S. Attorney Laura Duffy described Villlarreal as a top lieutenant to Sanchez Arellano. U.S. authorities say Sanchez Arellano's
group evolved from the remnants of the of once-powerful Arellano Felix drug trafficking organization founded by Sanchez Arellano's uncles.
Villarreal was arrested by Mexican authorities in July 2011 in Hermosillo, Sonora at the request of U.S. officials.
Following his arrest, Villarreal was held at a federal penitentiary in the state of Veracruz, according to a statement on Wednesday by the Mexican
Attorney General's Office.
On Wednesday, agents with Mexico's Federal Investigative Agency (AFI) handed him over to U.S. FBI agents."